


The Road You Didn't Take

by redeem147



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-14
Updated: 2011-08-14
Packaged: 2017-10-22 15:14:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/239429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redeem147/pseuds/redeem147
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set in season two.  Buffy meets the vampire with a soul. His name is Spike.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Road You Didn't Take

"Buffy, you're looking at that guy again."

Buffy twitched, caught by her friend. "What guy? I'm not looking at a guy."

"Sure you are." Willow gestured towards the pool table. "The blond guy in the black coat."

"Don't look!" she squeaked. "He'll know I'm looking. Which, by the way, I'm not." She picked up her French text and hid behind it. "Is he looking this way?"

"No."

She pouted. "Why not?"

Xander flipped a chair backwards and straddled it, joining his friends. "Hey Will, Buff. Where's Owen?"

"At home, studying. Like a," her voice dripped with sarcasm, "Good boy."

"Ouch, and meow." Xander scratched the air with imaginary claws. "Trouble in paradise? I thought you said he was the ‘perfect boyfriend'?"

"He's boring," Willow answered.

"You think he's boring?" Xander asked. "I thought you thought he was a nice guy."

"I do think he's a nice guy. Buffy thinks he's a boring boyfriend."

"I do not," Buffy interjected. "I think he's just, um..."

"Boring?" Xander offered.

"Well, kinda. Yeah."

"Xander," Willow asked. "What do you think of that guy playing pool?"

"Who? Jimmy Thompson? He's okay, apart from pantsing me in sixth grade. Why?"

"Not him. The other guy."

"The one in black, with the bleached blond hair? The Billy Idol wannabe?"

"Don't look," Buffy said, hiding behind her book again.

"I think he's a hood. Or a serial killer. Or a serial killing hood." He noticed Buffy's scowl, and decided to egg her on. "And definitely gay."

"Do you think so?" Willow asked, intrigued.

"Don't you, Buffy? Hey, Buff." Xander snapped his fingers under her nose. "Earth to Buffy. Come on, he can't be that fascinating."

"Vampire alert," Buffy said in a low voice.

"What? Where?"

"That guy who was standing by the bar. The one in the leisure suit. I mean, come on."

"I don't see a guy in a leisure suit," Xander said.

"That's because he just went out the back with Amanda from physics class. And I don't think he was asking her for help with his homework."

"The guy you like just followed them out," Willow noted.

"Great. He's going to get himself killed." Buffy stuffed a stake in her jacket pocket, getting up to head outside. "And I don't like him."

****

By the time she got outside, the man in black was leaning against the wall of the Bronze, smoking a cigarette. "Can I help you?" he asked in a British accent, as Buffy scanned the alley.

"I was looking for Amanda. She came outside with some guy. Didn't you see them?"

"The bird took off. Guy's gone."

"Gone where?"

"He would be that little pile of dust," the man flicked his ashes onto the ground, "There. You have got to be the slowest Slayer I've ever seen. Hard to believe you took out the Master."

"You know..."

"Obvious, innit?" He dropped the cigarette to the ground. "Name's Spike."

"I'm Buffy."

"Stupid name." He ground the butt under his boot heel, then brushed past her, disappearing into the night.

Willow stuck her head out the back door. "You okay? You were taking a while."

Buffy was red with anger. "That guy is the most infuriating, rudest..."

"You think he's hot," Willow said.

"Hell, yeah."

*****

A myriad of candles lit the basement in the deserted mansion on the end of town. A young looking woman in a high-waisted velvet dress shrieked with delight as her vamped-out minion handed her a long wooden box. "Oooh, sweet Eddie. You do know how to please a girl on her birthday."

The vampire knelt before her. "Mistress, it is my most fervent pleasure and duty to serve you."

"Do get up," she scolded. "You'll get your knees all dirty." She peeked into the box. "Ah, lovely. Pretty, pretty, pretty thing. Pretty shade of blue." She opened the lid wide and held up the box for all her minions to see. "Pretty, pretty little arm."

******

Buffy walked into the Bronze. The annoyingly handsome British guy leaned against the bar, not turning his head as she walked in. Jerk. She sauntered over to the table where her two friends sat. "Hello, friends of mine."

"Hey, Buffy," Willow waved with her left hand, the right under the table.

"Yo." Xander gave her the thumbs up, his left hand hidden as well. "Where's Owen?"

"He's at home, writing me a poem." She rolled her eyes. "The Emily Dickenson thing is getting pretty darn old."

"Well, she would be too, were she alive today, which she isn't, because she's dead. Which isn't really sad, cause she lived a long, long..."

"Will," Buffy interrupted. "Why are you so nervous? And where are your hands?"

Willow and Xander pulled their tightly clasped hands out from under the table. Willow smiled a shy smile, and Xander grinned.

"You two aren't... Are you dating?"

 

Her friends nodded in unison. "Guilty," Xander replied.

"Get out! Since when?"

"Since last summer," Willow said.

"And you didn't tell me?"

"We decided not to tell anyone. If it didn't work out, we didn't want our friends feeling weird around us."

"Our friends," Xander added, "Being you."

"So," Buffy sat down, her eyes mesmerized by the linked fingers, "Spill. How did this happen?"

"Xander kissed ice cream off my nose."

Buffy beamed. "That's so romantic."

"And," Xander said, "Nutritious."

"Ice cream isn't really... Oh, look Buffy." Willow grabbed Buffy's wrist. "Don't look, cause he's looking this way. Sort of. Now look."

"Look at what? Ohhh." Spike had taken his black duster off and laid it against the back of his chair, as he headed towards the pool table. "That's a nice t-shirt."

"I think," Xander stated, "That muscles are highly over-rated."

"Buffy, you know what you should do?" Willow asked. "You should so grab his coat and leave with it."

"And why should I do that? Is it nippy outside? I think not."

"No, cause you keep saying that he's ignoring you, and that would really get his attention."

"Why do you care that he's ignoring you?" Xander asked.

Willow made a ‘tsk' sound and shook her head. "Men. Cute but oblivious."

"I should get his attention with petty thievery?" She looked back at Spike leaning over the pool table, his shirt stretched tightly over his pecs. "Hey, worth a shot. Cover me."

Buffy sauntered over to the chair and tucked the coat under her arm. Willow and Xander stood in front of her all the way to the door, walking slowly until they got to the door. Buffy took off down the street with the coat, wondering if she was really going to get the kind of attention she wanted.

*****

"Open this door, you bitch!" Spike pounded on the Revello Drive door. "I mean it. I'm going to..."

The door opened, Buffy standing defiantly. "You're going to what? And be quiet. You'll wake up my mom."

"You live with your mum?" he asked, momentarily distracted. "Not your Watcher? Weird." Moment over, his face convulsed with anger. "You took my coat, you little..."

"What coat?" She asked, batting her eyes.

"You know bloody well what coat."

"This coat?" She picked it up from behind the door and held it up.

Spike lunged at her, but couldn't get into the house. An invisible barrier held him back. "Let me in!"

Buffy blinked for a moment, dropping the coat on the floor. "Oh, God." She pulled a stake from her pocket and prepared to thrust it into his chest. "You're a vampire."

He jumped back. "Yes, I'm a vampire. But I have a soul. So put that stake away and let me in."

"Yeah, right. A soul." She lifted the stake and moved towards him. "Vampires don't have souls."

"And I saved your friend Amanda wossnames for the good of my health?"

Her hand wavered. "You had a plan, or you were tricking me, or..."

"Or I don't like seeing foolish little girls die. Not anymore."

There was something in his face. Something in his eyes. Something honest. "I'll get your coat." She went into the house and retrieved the duster, shutting the door behind her. "I'll give this to you if you tell me why it means so much to you, and how you got a soul. Assuming you really have one, and you weren't trying to get inside my house and eat my mom."

"It's personal."

She held up her hands, stake in one and coat in the other. "I'm a person. Spill."

*****

She wouldn't let him inside, and he didn't want to tell his story on the front yard of her house, so she took him to the more secluded back yard and sat beside him on the porch. "So, tell me the tale of how the vampire got his soul."

"I've never told anyone this. You have to understand, this was the best, and the worst, time in my life. It started with a girl.

I was a vampire, as you know, and I was a pretty nasty one. Loved the fight, loved the kill."

"This is supposed to make me all sympathetic?" she asked.

"No. This is supposed to be me telling and you listening. If you can't do that..." he started to stand up.

"It's okay. I'm listening."

He sat back down and continued. "Slayers fascinated me. Killed one once, in China. So, went out of my way to find her when I found out there was one in New York. Found her in the rain one night. Skin like ebony, muscles like steel. Beautiful, dark, flashing eyes. We danced a bit. Fought. You know. And I had her. Could'a killed her. But. I. Didn't."

"You were in love with her," Buffy gasped.

"Yeah." He pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "She was my obsession, Nikki was. She was my dream, my destiny."

"Why didn't she kill you?"

"Cause," he said, pulling a long drag on the cigarette, then letting it out. "She loved me back."

"Oh."

"Couldn't go on. She tried to hide me from her Watcher. From her little boy. From herself, I suppose. It was ripping her up inside. So I left."

"That was the right thing to do, I guess."

"You have no idea." He looked into her eyes, blazing intensity, and she had to look away. "I didn't walk out on her. I went to Africa to get a soul. There's a demon there, grants you your fondest wish, if you fight hard enough for it. Nearly killed me, but I did it." He smiled a sad smile. "Never been so proud of myself. Never felt so much liked I'd really accomplished anything. Rushed back to New York, ready to throw myself at her feet. Tell her I was a new man. Someone she could love and be proud of."

"Did she take you back?"

"No." He threw the cigarette butt on the porch. "She was dead."

Buffy stared at him. She never thought she could feel so much pain for a vampire. She wanted to pull him into her arms and comfort him. She could see he was shaken to the core. She felt guilty for making him relive the pain. But instead, she put her hand gently on his knee and asked, "What happened?"

"Seems my ex, Drusilla, the one who'd made me, got wind of us. She's a jealous one, my Dru. Waited until she knew I was back in town, went to Nikki's and slit her throat. Left her in the bushes outside her apartment where she knew I'd find her." His eyes were wet with tears. "My poor Nikki. My brave, strong girl, broken like a little doll." He put his head in his hands, covering his eyes. He wiped his face, then stood up. "Satisfied? Can I have her coat now?"

"Her coat." Buffy looked down at the coat with guilt. "I'm sorry. I had no idea. It was just a prank. I was going to give it back."

He didn't say anything. Just held out his hand. She gave him the coat, and he put it on. He started to leave.

"Spike?" she asked. "Do you want to come inside?"

He kept walking.

*****

"My love is like a stake, ready to plunge into your heart, as I take..."

"That's nice, Owen," Buffy interrupted. "Very romantic."

"Gee, I'm glad you like it." The tall teenager smiled. "I have fifteen stanzas."

"Honey," Buffy lay her hand on top of his, as the band started playing in the background, "We have to talk."

"What did you say?" He spoke louder to be heard over the music.

"We have to talk," she said, louder yet.

"About what?" he shouted.

"I'm breaking up with you," she yelled, just as the music stopped. Every head in the Bronze turned to look at the couple. "Ah, crap." She took his hand and pulled him to his feet, pointing, "Outside."

He followed her out the back door. "What did I do?" he asked, his eyes particularly puppy-like.

"It's not you. It's me. It's just not working. I'll always think of you as a friend." She patted him on the shoulder. "You're a good guy, Owen. You'll make some girl very happy."

Battered by cliches, Owen slumped off into the night.

"You really are a little bitch, you know," came a voice from the shadows.

"Oh, Spike. I didn't see you." Buffy ran her fingers through her hair. "And I am not."

"Right." The light from the match as he lit his cigarette illuminated the contours of his face. It made him look mysterious and sexy, his full lips... "I said, I have something to tell you."

"Oh. Huh?"

"Something's going down, and as much as it pains me to ask, I could use your help. There's a shipment tonight at the air strip at the edge of town. A package. It'd be a good idea if we stopped it."

"What kind of shipment?"

"Evil kind." He crossed his arms. "Look, you going to help me out or not?"

"Sure. Whatever."

"Great," He said without enthusiasm. He led her to the front of the Bronze, climbing onto an old motorcycle. "Hop on."

"But I don't have a helmet."

"Wuss." He went over to another bike and picked up the helmet hanging from the back of it. "Put this on."

"That's stealing."

He raised an eyebrow as he lifted up the hem of his coat.

"That's different. I was going to give it back."

"Right." He raised one hand. "Borrowing a helmet." Then raised the other, making an imaginary scale. "Fate of the human race. God, that's a hard one."

She took the helmet and made a face, climbing on behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and could feel the heat rising from deep down inside. The scent of the leather filled her nostrils. She could feel the engine start between her legs. She leaned her head against his shoulder and smiled.

*****

They stopped a quarter of a mile from the strip and ran the rest of the way. The plane had just landed, and the pilot and another vampire were pulling a large, square box out of the hold. "The mistress will be very pleased," the second vampire stated. "Help me put this into the van."

"Or not." The vampires turned at the unexpected voice, as Spike and Buffy made quick work of the pilot. Spike held the second vampire by his shirt collar, stake pressed against his chest. "Who is your mistress?"

"I will not betray her."

He pressed the stake closer, the tip almost breaking the skin. "I'm sure she'd betray you, quick enough. Who is she? Say her name. I want to hear her name."

"Drusilla."

Spike lifted the stake away, then lunged it into the vampire's chest with a hard blow, his face shifting into demon visage as he struck, a feral yell pulling from his throat. The vampire minion crumbled to dust.

"Spike?"

"What?" He spun and glared at Buffy.

Her heart beat faster. She swallowed. "Shouldn't you have found out where she was before you killed him?"

"Damn." His face shifted back to human form, and he pounded his fist into the side of the plane.

She put her hand on his arm, gently. "It's okay. We'll find her."

Without warning, Spike pulled Buffy into his arms and crushed his lips against hers. Her tongue was tentatively searching for his when he pushed her away. "I can't do this. I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay. Really."

He turned away, and started rifling through the plane. "Help me find something to open the box."

Buffy pulled a crow bar from behind the pilot's seat. "Like this?"

Spike grabbed the bar and pried off the lid with vampire strength. "Yeah. Just what I thought."

Buffy looked down into the box. "Ick. It's a head. A really ugly head."

"That little lunatic. She was actually trying to put together the Judge."

"A really ugly blue head."

"She could have destroyed every human in the world. Then what would she eat? Not like she could have controlled him, either."

"I've seen some ugly heads in my time..."

"We have to destroy it."

"You know," she squinted and turned her head sideways, "He looks a bit like that Luke guy."

"The head is invulnerable." He looked up at Buffy. "Pry open his mouth with your fingers, and hold it open."

"Ew." But she did as she was told. "Now what?"

Spike picked up the crow bar, placing the sharp end into the mouth of the head. One hard thrust, and the bar punctured its brain. "That should do it. Wouldn't have worked if she'd assembled him, but in this state..."

"Dead?"

"Quite dead."

*****

Even though the Judge was no longer a threat, Spike insisted on burying the head before putting his bike in the back of the van. He told Buffy to climb in beside him, then deftly hot wired the van.

"Where are we going?" Buffy asked, as he drove back towards town.

"I'll know when I see it. Where was the Master hiding out?"

"Old warehouse, downtown."

"Not her style. Any other abandoned buildings?" He put his foot on the brake. "What's that place, then?" he asked, pointing out the window.

"That's the mansion. We call it that because it's the only one in town. Nobody's lived there for years. Some kids think it's haunted."

"If nobody lives there," he asked, "Why do I see candlelight through the window?"

"Squatters?" she replied.

"Or vampires."

They carefully opened a downstairs window and crept inside. They met the first vampire in the corridor beside the staircase heading upstairs. Buffy dusted it, silently. They found the door to the garden, where Drusilla sat on a stone bench, cradling the blue arm like a baby. As soon as they stepped outside, a fledgling vampire leapt on Spike, who fought it while Buffy advanced on Drusilla with a stake. Spike dusted the vampire, crying "No!" when he saw Buffy about to strike his sire.

He carefully took the stake from Buffy's hand. "Hello, luv."

"Hello, my Spike. Come to play?"

"No." He grabbed her throat with his left hand, raising the stake with his right. "Come to finish things."

Buffy stood back. This was his fight.

"You wouldn't kill Mummy," Drusilla stated.

"Like you killed your Daddy?" he asked. "Like you killed Nikki?"

She squirmed in his grasp, but he held firm. She stared into his eyes. "Your Slayer. That was a sick, sad, silly thing, sweet William. All for the best. Except," her gaze shifted towards Buffy. "Now you have a new Slayer. New love. I see it in your heart. Dirty, twisted, nasty feelings. She's precious to you."

"Shut up, Dru." Spike plunged the stake into her heart, and she exploded. "You never knew when to shut up, pet." He let her dust slip through his fingers as he sank onto the bench. "And to think I loved you once."

Buffy lay a hand on his shoulder. "What she said. About me."

Spike looked at her. "You're a child."

"I am not."

"How old are you?" he asked.

"Sixteen."

"You're a child."

"I'll be seventeen in two days."

He nodded. "I'll drive you home. After we bury this arm."

*****

Buffy sat in the Bronze with Willow and Xander. Giles had been by to wish her happy birthday and have a piece of cake, but Buffy knew he was uncomfortable and told him to go home.

"You don't seem very happy, for a happy birthday girl," Xander noticed.

"Hm." Buffy picked at the icing on her cake, but didn't eat any.

"Can I have that? You know, if you don't want it." He picked up her plate and dove in with his fork.

"She's sad cause she thinks that Spike guy she likes left town."

"Serial hood? Serial vampire hood? Good riddance."

Buffy sighed. "He could have said goodbye."

"Um, Buffy?" Willow was smiling.

"I mean, I did help him stop the Judge, or the Blue Man Group, or whatever that thing was."

"Buffy, look behind you."

"Why? If it's Owen and Amanda, I know they're dating. Big whoop. I hope they'll be very happy."

A black leather clad arm reached from behind her and dropped a red rose on the table. "Happy Birthday, Slayer."

Buffy spun around. "Spike?"

"Seventeen? Maybe not such a kid."

Buffy jumped up and threw her arms around him.

Xander rolled his eyes as his friend locked lips with the vampire. "I've always heard public displays of affection are the sign of a troubled relationship."

"Xander?"

"Yeah, Will?"

"Shut up and kiss me."


End file.
